Moura, Portugal - Day 3

Sunday, March 10, 2024

Today was our second full day at Burrico D'orada, just outside Moura, Portugal. It’s been raining since we arrived on Friday evening, but the sun was finally shining this morning — a welcomed sight! Sunshine has a way of lifting everyone’s spirits.

Rita, the owner of Burrico D’orado, delivered another beautiful breakfast basket to our doorstep this morning around 9:00am. The contents were similar to yesterday’s basket with slight variations to flavor combinations. The basket included milk, coffee, and juice, yogurt & granola, local sausage and cheeses, rolls, butter, honey, and jams. My favorite food today was the yogurt parfait with pear puree. It was really delicious!

After breakfast, Rita invited our family to join her in taking her dogs for a walk in the forest. I was excited for this because I wanted to learn more about Portugal’s native cork oak trees. Plus, Andi and I really enjoy visiting with Rita. At 10:30am, we saw her waiting for us by the property gate with her dogs. We decided to leave Tory behind at the rental house when we saw how jumpy her dogs were. Although Rita’s dogs are medium-sized, on leashes, and both very friendly, we knew Tory would be afraid of their energetic behavior.

All the spring wildflowers were in bloom along the road leading to the forest. Fields of yellow, purple, and white flowers dotted our view. The purple flowers were wild rosemary, and it was growing all over the sides of the road.

The gravel road we walked along was quite flooded from the recent rains. If we’d been at home wearing our muck boots, this wouldn’t have been a problem, but Andi, Aden, and I had to be a little more careful since we were each wearing our only pair of tennis shoes.

As we walked, Rita told us about the native olive trees that grow in the Alentejo Region. There are three methods of growing olive trees here, she explained— trees that exist naturally, intensive farming where trees are planted 10 feet apart in rows, and super-intensive farming where olive trees are planted so close together that they grow more like bushes. Rita made it clear that she was against corporate farming practices because the latter two methods described destroy natural habitats, and strip the land of nutrients. She pointed to one field we walked by that had been completely clear-cut to make way for an intensive-method olive grove. There were already native, mature olive trees growing there, she said, but they were cut down to make room for more trees to be planted together in rows.

The intensive farms’ harvesting process is also harmful for the environment. She said big machines come in and suck everything from the tree, including stems, leaves, olives, and yes — even birds. Not every single olive oil company does this, of course. The alternative method is labor intensive, though. Olives either need to be picked by hand, or a big blanket is spread under the olive tree, and then a tractor is used to vigorously shake the tree causing the olives to fall to the ground.

Rita said she wasn’t an expert in cork, so we didn’t end up learning much about that tree. She did tell us that cork trees are native to the central Alentejo Region of Portugal, and that they are members of the oak tree family. She also said that cork oaks are a protected plant in Portugal, and chopping one down carries a heavy government fine.

It started to sprinkle rain again toward the end of our walk, so we decided to turn around and head back to Burrico D'orada. Soon after, it was time to leave for our lunch reservation at Quinta do Quetzal. Rita recommended we have lunch at this fine-dining restaurant, and promised it’d be the best meal we’d have in Portugal. Quinta do Quetzal restaurant is set on the slopes of a winery of the same name, in the nearby town of Vidigueira.

Andi and I started our meal with a glass of red wine, bread and a stinky goat cheese, and tempura-fried green beans for Tory and Aden. We knew the food was going to be fancier, so we wanted to make sure Tory and Aden had something they’d enjoy eating from the start.

For our entrees, we ordered a cauliflower steak with salad greens, and a steak with crispy potatoes and mushrooms. The quality of the food was really delicious; we all loved it. Andi ordered a second glass of the Quetzal Reserve 2020 and raved about how good it was. “Will you bring my wife one of these, too?” he asked the server. The wine was smooth and full-bodied. Andi was careful not to consume too much food or alcohol because of his sensitive stomach, and ended up pouring a lot of his red wine into my glass. Let’s just say I felt a little tipsy by the end of our meal.

The kids wanted dessert, of course, so Andi ordered three different dishes to share — a drunken pear which Andi and Aden liked the best, chocolate mousse which was Tory’s favorite, and a pumpkin pudding of some sort that our server highly recommended, but none us preferred.

I purchased a bottle of the Quetzal Reserve to take home with us before we left the restaurant, wishing I could find this wine at home in the USA.

Next, we drove to Herdade do Rocim winery for the make-up wine tasting we cancelled yesterday morning when I wasn’t feeling well. I didn’t need more wine today, to be honest, but the tasting was already scheduled for 4:00pm and didn’t feel like we could cancel a second time.

Andi and I were surprised to see that we had the entire winery to ourselves at Herdade do Rocim! Our tasting included a private tour of the facility and six different wines with a charcuterie board. Rocim also produces their own olive oil which we tried as well.

All of our wine tasting experiences in the past two days were very different from another, but lovely in their own ways. I think what made each experiences so incredible was seeing how passionate the Alentejo people are about the wines produced in their region. Both the wines and the olive oils are very good quality. I’d heard of Portugal’s Douro Valley wines before visiting here, but I’d never heard of Alentejo wines. I’m here to say, they’re top of the line and shouldn’t be missed.

After the tasting, we returned to our rental house for the remainder of the evening. Andi threw together some leftovers for the kids, but honestly we weren’t very hungry after our rich meal at Quinta do Quetzal and snacks at Herdade do Rocim.

Tomorrow, we’ll say good-bye to this area of central Portugal, and begin making our way toward Lisbon. Our family very much enjoyed our stay at Burrico D'orada, and our visit to the Alentejo Region. It was full of all our favorite things — rural countryside, green pastures, spring wildflowers, a focus on local & sustainable, olives & wine, history, and some of the friendliest people we’ve met thus far in our European travels.